Regular readers of this column already know how highly I rate Stone Church in Brattleboro. The converted Gothic church is one of the coolest places to catch live music in the state, with an unmatched vibe and a penchant for booking seriously cool shows. I truly didn’t think I could love Stone Church more.
Well, hold my beer. (Just kidding, it’s a seltzer; it’s 11 a.m., you philistine.) Last week, Howard Weiss-Tisman of Vermont Public reported that Stone Church had slapped concert-ticket resale giant StubHub with a lawsuit. Seeking damages in excess of $5 million, the venue alleges that StubHub has manipulated ticket prices and misled potential buyers about ticket availability. The suit states that StubHub is in violation of the Lanham Act, the federal statute prohibiting any unauthorized use of trademarked names.
I could regurgitate StubHub’s very corporate response, which essentially breaks down to “Nuh-uh, no way,” but the beauty of having your own column is that you can just say: I hope Stone Church fleeces that music fan-abusing collective of organized ticket scalpers. If you think I’m being harsh, kindly recall that StubHub got hit with a $10 million bill from the Federal Trade Commission in April for violating laws by, you guessed it, promoting deceptive ticket prices.
Stone Church owner Robin Johnson declined to comment — not surprising, considering it’s an active legal matter — but as far as I’m concerned, he’s doing the Lord’s work. Independent venues such as this one have been under siege in recent years. A report released last year by the National Independent Venue Association revealed that, due to factors including “predatory ticket resale practices,” 64 percent of American stages didn’t turn a profit in 2024.
It’s early days with the lawsuit, but stay tuned. Should Stone Church prevail, there’s potential for a much-needed overhaul of the secondary ticket market.
Todd Howland of White River Junction is a human rights scholar and the interim director of Vermont Law & Graduate School’s Environmental Justice Clinic. His work to build what he calls a “human rights economy” has taken Howland from Harvard University to serving as the director of the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center in Washington, D.C., as well as a human rights representative for the United Nations in Colombia.
His most recent project? Launching Human Rights Radio, an online collection of socially conscious music cataloged by Howland and the other members of an advisory board composed of human rights experts and artists alike. The database features more than 200 songs from multiple genres, in various languages from all over the globe. It’s organized into separate playlists, such as “Economic and Social Rights,” “Cultural Rights and Cultural Identities,” and “Children’s Rights.” Tracks range from John Lennon’s “Imagine” to “Zombie” by the Cranberries to Fela Kuti’s “Colonial Mentality.” The idea is that gathering the music in one place will inspire awareness and action.
“Human Rights Radio emphasizes how human dignity comes first before profit, before ego and self-interest,” Howland wrote in an email to Seven Days.
Listeners can also upload songs and create their own playlists. Check it out at humanrightsradio.org.
Add another festival to the itinerary: The inaugural Mojo Burlington Music Festival hits Waterfront Park on Saturday, September 26.
Mojo is a relatively new entity putting on a collection of “local” music fests. Several University of Massachusetts Amherst students launched the company in 2021. Breaking out beyond the Boston area, this year Mojo has festivals planned for a handful of other cities, including Happy Valley, Pa.; Columbia, S.C.; and Mansfield, Conn.
The Burlington fest leans heavily on local DJs such as Kate Kush, Matt Payne and David Chief. There’s not much sign of Burlington’s thriving indie-rock scene on the lineup, which is a little curious. The headliner is surf-rock outfit Twin Fin — hailing from Hawaii — and artists such as Dew Galvin and Em donovan (aka Mojo director Emily donovan) are from Boston. But local jam acts Soundhound and Acid Wash are on the bill, plus Vermont newcomers indie-soul band Back Pocket Beer. So while some Queen City heavyweights are missing, the fest might be a good chance to catch lesser-known Vermont artists.
According to Mojo’s founders, the company’s mission is to give local musicians and independent artists a platform by bringing their festival to different scenes and shining a light on the resident talent.
“We kind of wanted to create one central hub where people could find out about the local artists,” Donovan told Boston station WGBH in May.
I’m all for supporting indie scenes and local artists, so hopefully Mojo can deliver. It does seem odd to have people from another state come to Burlington to curate and present a show of our own music scene to us. But exposure is exposure — I’m not trying to gatekeep! To learn more and purchase tickets, visit mojobrand.us/mojoburlington.
This article appears in August 26 • 2026.
Got something to say?
Send a letter to the editor and we'll publish your feedback in print!
